Aretha Franklin – Aretha’s Gold

I think you can tell, in my early days of buying vinyls, that I am after the ones I’ll keep forever. The solid friends that will never leave me. Case in point:

What can I say about Aretha, except she is AMAZING. She IS soul, never far from her gospel roots, and possessed of so much power and grace that all the so-called R&B singers of today wither in her shadow. This early collection of brilliant classics proves it.

SIDE A

I Never Loved A Man (The Way That I Love You), the title of which always made me think she was talking to another woman, is one helluva way to start this anthology. So soulful, a showcase for the true power of Aretha’s vocals.

Do Right Woman, Do Right Man is such a gorgeous track, a soul-song equivalent of a big warm hug.